Business pranksters Enron return for more hilarious business pranks

At the turn of the century, there was a hilarious energy company called Enron. In 2001, Enron debuted its masterpiece and went bankrupt because executives kept pulling this hilarious prank where they hid billions of dollars to claim success for failing business ventures. Only two months after America’s Mayor Rudy Giuliani assured the country that it was okay to laugh again, Enron gave us a reason to do so.

As of yesterday, Enron is back, doing what it does best, playing practical jokes on people and tucking it up like they were goddamn Murr. Celebrating the 23rd anniversary of its bankruptcy, Enron shot back onto the scene with a post on disgraced social media website X, the everything site that is now mostly Nazis, crypto schemes, and bots, posting, “We’re back. Can we talk?” The company also bought billboard space in Houston and a full-page ad in the Houston Chronicle, so yeah, they’re committing to the bit.

We're back. Can we talk? pic.twitter.com/9kt4g0Q84Z

— Enron (@Enron) December 2, 2024

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The big setup for Enron’s latest public display of humor is a video parody of empty corporate mission statements that ends with a diverse group of people proclaiming, “I am Enron.” We’ve all seen those videos where a boxer looks at the camera and says, “I am Enron,” right? Additionally, Enron has recently updated its name to an acronym, meaning Energy, Nurture, Repentant, Opportunity, and Nice. “Our purpose is built on these values, driving us to lead the energy transition, innovate, and generate a future fueled by innovation,” the website jokes.

It’s unclear what this new Enron will do. A press release announced it would be a “company dedicated to solving the global energy crisis.” Indeed, the website claims it will continue to be an energy company, a nod to the company’s earliest material, and that it will do so via decentralization, a nice touch toward modernizing the old stuff. What’s funnier than yet another decentralized cryptocurrency? ‘

The real tell for all this is that Enron is owned by The College Company, the parent company of the satirical conspiracy theory Birds Aren’t Real. So, while we think the new Enron is an excellent joke, we don’t think it’s going to be as big as the last Enron joke—that one cost shareholders more than $74 billion and 5,000 Enron employees their jobs and pensions. Maybe you had to be there for that one. But we’d be remiss if we didn’t point out the punchline of the whole thing: the $118 hoodie and $89 Power of Yes puffer vest in the Company Store. Move over Simpsons writers; these really are the smartest guys in the room.